/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/65414531/Screen_Shot_2019_10_07_at_12.47.17_AM.0.png)
As Philadelphia Union fans were leaving Talen Energy Stadium on Sunday night disappointed with another loss going into the playoffs, many of them walked past a wall in the concourse displaying the limited edition posters made for each home game this season.
The posters are a good reminder — even after a disappointing night Sunday — of the many wins and the positive vibes that came out of the team’s headquarters in Chester this season. The Union finished the season picking up 34 of their 55 points at home with a 10-3-4 record despite losing the season opener and closer at home with the only other loss coming to Portland Timbers at the end of May.
Whether it was producing funny videos of Phang vandalizing a car with Ed Bassmaster “Would you look at that!), re-creating Beavis and Butthead (“Settle down, Aaronson”) or inventing a talking hot dog character to promote Dollar Dog Night with Kacper Przybylko, the Union’s digital team did a notable job delivering great content to match the performances on the field.
The limited edition posters, which were sold at each home game, added another fun element to the pop culture-inspired leanings of the digital team. Seeing the posters together on the wall — minus the one decided by a fan vote for Sunday’s season finale — is a bit like the nostalgic exercise of looking at old rock show posters at a club.
There’s the alumni poster paying homage to Le Toux, Barnetta, BC and company, homegrown wunderkind Brenden Aaronson as Spider Man and a Mike Judge cartoon, Auston Trusty as Rocky, a mash-up of all the jerseys through the first 10 seasons, the Union lineup as Lego Mini-Figs and ones inspired by Stranger Things and other movie/TV shows.
If the Union crash out of the playoffs at home against the New York Red Bulls on October 20, this season will feel like even more of a gigantic tease than it’s already started to feel with back-to-back losses for the first time since the first two games of the season.
Still, regardless of what happens, it’s hard to deny the fun (nearly) everyone who calls themselves a fan has had along the way or the good work that many of the folks behind the scenes — like the designers who made the posters, the video production crew, etc. — have done throughout the course of the season.
We asked who, and YOU let us know! Presenting: Today’s match poster feat The Machine, Skilsinho, and the Captain
— X - Philadelphia Union (@PhilaUnion) October 6, 2019
Stop by our 50/50 kiosks at today's match to snag yours!#DOOP pic.twitter.com/v7uk7a3qHQ